# Best Sugar For Brewing



## ky toker (Jun 2, 2005)

So about 5 years ago I had bought my father a Mr. Beer brew kit for Christmas and we are finally going to use. :c The abridged version; six months before chirstmas he made a statement that he wanted to start brewing beer. So I thought it would be cool to remember this and get him a good gift. 5 years later I call him and tell him that he will; 1) either open it up, 2)give it to me, or 3) we can start to brew together.

Happily he choose #3. So since all the mix that came with it is out of date I need to put some supplies to get the ball rolling.

What is the best sugar for brewing? I was told by a friend not to use cane (table) sugar, I believe. I could just email him, though why not ask you guys.


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## Mindflux (Dec 5, 2005)

Best sugar for brewing? Uhm. That's going to be your malt extract, primarily. Especially if you are just starting out. LME or DME (liquid or dry malt extracts). You can use corn-sugar at bottling time to produce carbonation in the bottles via the yeast, though.


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## ky toker (Jun 2, 2005)

Mindflux said:


> Best sugar for brewing? Uhm. That's going to be your malt extract, primarily. Especially if you are just starting out. LME or DME (liquid or dry malt extracts). *You can use corn-sugar at bottling time to produce carbonation in the bottles via the yeast, though*.


Sir, you hit it on the nose. That's what I was trying to think about. Thank you.

Any other tips would be great.


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## altbier (Feb 20, 2005)

Mindflux said:


> Best sugar for brewing? Uhm. That's going to be your malt extract, primarily. Especially if you are just starting out. LME or DME (liquid or dry malt extracts). You can use corn-sugar at bottling time to produce carbonation in the bottles via the yeast, though.


COOL! We have another brewer in the jungle!

What he said is correct.

If you are looking for sugar to bump up the amount of alcohol during fermenting use belgian rock candy. More of this type sugar will convert to alcohol as opposed to your regular sugar cane. There is some scientific reasoning behind this, but I'll leave that to the more scientific brewers to explain.

Good luck! It is a great hobby!


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## Mindflux (Dec 5, 2005)

altbier said:


> COOL! We have another brewer in the jungle!
> 
> What he said is correct.
> 
> ...


hrm.. I figured you would have recognized my username from www.brewboard.com unless that's a different altbeir...


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## SeanGAR (Jul 9, 2004)

Regardless of concentration, fermentable carbohydrates are usually assimilated by yeast in the following order: sucrose, glucose, and fructose are consumed most rapidly (24-49 hrs); followed by maltose (70-72 hrs); then maltotriose (after 72 hrs). The cidery character often ascribed to sucrose is, in my opinion, more a result of over use (less malt and malt taste) than anything else. Belgian candy sugar, for example, is mainly sucrose that has been partially caramelized (heated dry at high temperature to form anhydrous chemical reactions resulting in flavor development).

A paper on glucose control is linked below. Sucrose is hydolysed extracellularly, maltose is actively transported into the cell, where it is hydrolysed, but the transporter is downregulated by glucose. There are complex interations between sugars. High intial glucose levels can lead to stuck fermentations because of "glucose control" (see paper).

http://mic.sgmjournals.org/cgi/repr...8f5433cf8e17bd6a6042d84a&keytype2=tf_ipsecsha


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## altbier (Feb 20, 2005)

Mindflux said:


> hrm.. I figured you would have recognized my username from www.brewboard.com unless that's a different altbeir...


welcome to club stogie! same boring altbier on both boards!

nice to see a cigar smoking brewer in the jungle! welcome!


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## Funnymantrip (Oct 28, 2004)

In a pinch I used powered sugar for one batch. It turned out ok.


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## ky toker (Jun 2, 2005)

> If you are looking for sugar to bump up the amount of alcohol during fermenting use belgian rock candy. More of this type sugar will convert to alcohol as opposed to your regular sugar cane. There is some scientific reasoning behind this, but I'll leave that to the more scientific brewers to explain.


So, the Belgian rock candy will go in at the begining or at bottling time? I don't have the directions in front of me at the moment.



seanGAR said:


> Regardless of concentration, fermentable carbohydrates are usually assimilated by yeast in the following order: sucrose, glucose, and fructose are consumed most rapidly ............ High intial glucose levels can lead to stuck fermentations because of "glucose control" (see paper).


Yeah, I had to read that a couple of times as it didn't look like english at first. :r


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## SeanGAR (Jul 9, 2004)

ky toker said:


> So, the Belgian rock candy will go in at the begining or at bottling time? I don't have the directions in front of me at the moment.


Typically added at the beginning of boil along with the rest of the fermentables, but you can also add at strike minus 5 min to get more of the aromatic component from the sugar.

Again, candy sugar is sucrose. "Sucrose is completely fermentable by yeast and is added in the copper as crystals. It cannot be directly fermented by yeast, but must first be inverted to glucose and fructose by the enzyme invertase which is secreted by the yeast." A Textbook of Brewing, De Clerck.

"Pure sucrose and pure invert sugar are equally well utilized by yeasts with no differential effects on beer flavor." Malting and Brewing Science, Vol 1 2nd ed., Briggs, Hough, Stevens, Young.

"If the sugar is required for priming, it is preferable to use invert sugar because it has a better taste and softer palate on account of the fructose present." A Textbook of Brewing, De Clerck.

Conversely ...
"Sucrose imparts a cidery taste due to "spillover" byproducts created during fermentation. On the other hand, partially refined forms of sucrose, such as light and dark brown sugar, give a rum-like flavor, which some people like very much in ales. The strong flavors of these brews seem to mask the cidery note.". The Brewer's Handbook, Goldammer.
{{Bass supposedly uses brown sugar.}}

It is "common knowledge" that sucrose negatively impacts beer flavor. I found a paper that showed 30-40% sugar (sucrose or invert) in the beer lowered flavor quality, but who wants to make beer using sugar? No information here on whether or not a small amount of sucrose negatively impacts flavor.

Beer from wort supplemented with large quantities of sucrose or invert sugar. Przemysl Fermentacyjny i Owocowo-Warzywny (1983), 27(8), 7-10. Adding 30-40% sucrose or invert sugar to barley wort decreased the protein and dextrin contents below the requirements of yeast. The sugar or invert addn. increased the content of higher alcs. in the beer by 70-210%, aldehydes by 10-40%, and esters by 70-200%. EtOH content increased from 3.6 to 4.24-5.07%. The Hartong test results were improved and stability at 20° increased from 11 to 14-18 days. The flavor was poor. The foaming was normal or poor, depending on the brewing process.

Ester levels during beer fermentation and storage. Brauwissenschaft (1977), 30(5), 129-33. The formation of higher alcs. and esters during fermn. and storage was investigated with regard to yeast strain and sucrose addn. Yeast strain had a greater effect on higher alc. formation than on ester formation. The formation of isoamyl alc. started immediately after fermn. began and rose rapidly before tapering off to a level >2-fold that of the other alcs. Addn. of sucrose resulted in higher concns. of all higher alcs., except for propanol, and of all esters, esp. isoamyl acetate.

Selection of a mashing method to improve sucrose utilization in the production of brewer's wort. Przemysl Fermentacyjny i Rolny (1971), 15(8), 7-10. Worts from mashes contg. 20% added (on malt basis) sucrose (A) contained less total N (16.9%), N compds. pptd. with tannin (18.0%), P2O5 (18.3%), and dextrins (28.7%) than all-malt worts (B). Beers from A contained less total N (31.7%) and N compds. pptd. with tannin (37.3%); and more aldehydes (40.5%), diacetyl (23.2%), alc. (22.8%), and assocd. with it a decrease in real ext., and had a higher apparent degree of fermentation (10.7%). Beers from modified worts (heated to 75° without holding at 62°) contained 38.5% more dextrins than beers from A. Beers from modified worts and 20% sucrose (C) contained 9.4% more alc. and 30.7% less aldehydes, and their apparent degree of fermentation was 7.7% higher than in A; foaming and taste of beers from C were satisfactory. Beers from worts prepd. with 30% sucrose were low in total N, and contained 370% more aldehydes and 47% more fusel oils than beers from B.

Seems that the purity and amount of sucrose is an issue. As well, if yeast nutrients are not added along with purified sugars, the yeast have less nutrients per sugar and this can negatively impact flavor development by itself (stressing yeast). As I've said before, it appears to be the gravity, lack of nutrients, impurities in sucrose and other effects that might negatively impact flavor. But it appears in my experience and from what I have read that you can prime with sucrose just fine.


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## ky toker (Jun 2, 2005)

SeanGAR said:


> Seems that the purity and amount of sucrose is an issue. As well, if yeast nutrients are not added along with purified sugars, the yeast have less nutrients per sugar and this can negatively impact flavor development by itself (stressing yeast). As I've said before, it appears to be the gravity, lack of nutrients, impurities in sucrose and other effects that might negatively impact flavor. But it appears in my experience and from what I have read that you can prime with sucrose just fine.


A lot of info there. Not saying I get it all at the moment but I'll reread and when I start to brew it should all come together. Thanks for the post.


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## TideRoll (Nov 7, 2005)

Wow, there are obviously some very accomplished brewers here. I wish I were one of them, but I'm not. I started off on a Mr. Beer kit, too. It was a nice, easy way to get into the hobby, and produced some pretty darned good brews. I obtained some highly refined corn syrup from the local Coca-Cola company that I used to use when I bottled . It was sweet, of course, but had very little taste beyond simply sweet.

Of course, Ninja Vanish has most of what I had left now. I'm wondering when he's going to brew his first batch? (Hint, Hint!).


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## Mindflux (Dec 5, 2005)

Who's Ninja Vanish? I knew someone with that username on a car forum I was on. Wonder if it's the same one.


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## TideRoll (Nov 7, 2005)

Mindflux said:


> Who's Ninja Vanish? I knew someone with that username on a car forum I was on. Wonder if it's the same one.


I don't know for sure if it is the same person. This particular Ninja Vanish is my nephew, though he has a really good head-start on stogies over me. I'll have to catch him at home and ask him if he is on a car forum. What kind of car forum was it?


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## viesturs (Jun 22, 2003)

Have you tried corn sugar? I was told it was the best to use.


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## Mindflux (Dec 5, 2005)

TideRoll said:


> I don't know for sure if it is the same person. This particular Ninja Vanish is my nephew, though he has a really good head-start on stogies over me. I'll have to catch him at home and ask him if he is on a car forum. What kind of car forum was it?


VWvortex.com

He goes by "n1nja van1sh" or something like that.


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## TheSmokingHiker (Jan 11, 2005)

I recommend buying a kit to brew your first batch. All it is is the particular grains and sugars you need to brew a batch of beer. We started with a Brown Ale. It turned out incredibly good. I am no expert though. I just like the way good beer tastes.


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